Truth
by Mel1
Summary: A new girl is intoduced to the Cliffhangers, and has a connection to one of them. Soon to come: an old friend says goodbye, a game of truth leads to some surprising facts.
1. A New Arrival

The sun began to creep in through the blinds, but the first sign of a new day didn't come for Peter and Sophie until the alarm went off at 6:45. Rolling over, he was tempted to hit the snooze button again before realizing that he was getting into a really bad habit of showing up to work later then usual and people were starting to ask questions so he turned the alarm off instead. Turning over onto his other side, Peter cuddled up with Sophie for a few moments before whispering in her ear "Time to wake up sleepy head."

"Five more minutes," she moaned sleepily.

"Come on, it's a big day for the Cliffhangers. They have never reacted well when we put a new member into their group, and I think today is going to be the worst. I'm going to go put on the coffee so get a move on." He then kissed her on her cheek before heading out of the bedroom. After a quick stop in the bathroom, he continued to the kitchen. He had decided he was going to surprise Sophie and have breakfast made when she came out. Working diligently, he managed to have scrambled eggs, bacon, and coffee ready to go and he still had not heard a peep from her. When he finally decided to take breakfast to her, he headed down the hall with the tray, and when he reached the doorway, he saw that her side of the bed was empty. 

"It's about time you got up," he called before he heard noises in the bathroom that would lead him to believe that Sophie was throwing up. "You OK, honey," he asked, peering into the bathroom.

After a few more moments in which she did not answer him, she got up and turned on the sink. Once she had rinsed her mouth out, she emerged from the bathroom with her blonde hair plastered against her face. 

"You don't look so good," he said, walking towards her and brushing her hair away from her face. 

"I'm fine…now," she said, finally starting to regain some of the color in her cheeks. 

"I think maybe you should stay home today," he said directing her towards the bed.

"I'm fine, really," she said but as she neared the bed and smelled the bacon and eggs, she made a beeline back to the bathroom. 

"That's it. I'm calling Jeff and telling him that we aren't going to be in today."

Once the urge had subsided, Sophie emerged from the bathroom once again, this time taking a seat far away from the breakfast that Peter had just made, just in case the urge hit her again. "No Peter. You yourself said that it was a big day for the Cliffhangers. We need to be there."

"It's OK," Peter said, sitting next to Sophie. "I'll just have Jeff hold Carrie back a day. I don't want to put her with the Cliffhangers if one of us isn't there to supervise the interactions."

"Peter. She's already been here for a week. We never hold students back this long. It's not good for her to continue to be isolated from everyone, and you know that. Go. I'll be fine," She said giving in to the fact that at least one of them was staying home from work today.

"Are you sure? Peter asked as he removed the tray from Sophie's side of the bed and motioned for her to climb back in under the covers.

"Yeah, besides, it might be fun to take it easy for the day, catch up on the cheesy daytime television," she said as she followed Peter's lead and crawled back into bed.

Walking over, Peter gave Sophie a kiss on her forehead. "I'll call you later," he said before turning towards the closet to get dressed before he headed off to work.

~*~

Peter sat in his office going over the morning paperwork when he heard a knock on the door. "Come in," he called.

"Good morning Peter."

"Morning Jeff. What can I do for you?" he asked while shuffling his papers and placing them in a neat pile off to one side.

"There is someone out here to see you, a Carrie Jenkins, and Kat and Hank would like a moment of your time when you're not too busy."

"Thanks Jeff. Tell Kat that I need to deal with Carrie and make sure she gets the big tour, etc. She knows the new student routine. Once I get through with that, she and I can talk. Tell her that she is welcome to sit and wait for me if she wants, or considering that Hank is here with her, I can find her later."

"Sure thing Peter. No Problem."

"And Jeff?"

"Yeah?" Jeff asked, standing in the doorway.

"After you send Carrie in here, can you head down to the cafeteria and ask Daisy to come here. The Cliffhangers are on kitchens this morning and they should still be down there, finishing up. Tell them that when they are done, to head to the lodge. They should no that already, but a subtle reminder never hurt."

"No problem Peter."

When Jeff left, Peter took a moment to compose himself. Carrie had already been here a week and this was the first time he was able to meet with her. While it had always been against policy to keep a student sheltered for so long upon first arrival, he found himself with no other alternative when she was brought in as high as she was. The worst part for him was that he had told no one, other then Sophie about the new girl, but he had to for the good of the group. The nurse told him the day Carrie was brought in that she was so doped up that she would be out of it for awhile and that they were giving her IV drugs to sleep off the effects of whatever she had taken. After sleeping for the first two days, the drugs had finally worked their way out of her system and she was no longer a danger to herself or to the other students. He was quickly snapped out of these thoughts when he saw her standing at the door.

"Hey Carrie, why don't you come in and take a seat," Peter said, motioning to the seat across from his desk.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," she said, taking the seat, but giving no sign of care. Peter could tell that she was going to be a tough one to crack. From what he had been told, her tough draw in life had made her unwilling to accept love. 

After taking a moment to compose himself, Peter began his introduction speech. "There are a few things you need to be made aware of, before I assign you a group and let you go get unpacked and meet your roommates and group members," he started. "First things first, standard protocol around here has a staff member searching your bags to make sure that you tried not to smuggled drugs weapons or inappropriate clothing in here. That being said," Peter said while at the same time reaching down and picking up her bag, "given your condition upon arrival, we searched your bag and found your stash, and have since disposed of it, so there is no need to even bother looking for it."

"That's got to be some sort of invasion of privacy," Carrie protested, not necessarily because she felt as such, but rather because she felt that was what she should be doing in such a situation.

"Feel that way, if you will, but when your parents checked you in…." He started before being interrupted.

"They're not my parents."

"OK, when you were checked in, your guardians signed a waiver releasing you into our custody for the time being, and along with that, they OK'ed the search of your possessions as well as a full physical and blood test." Peter could tell that the mention of her parents, or rather her guardians had really set her on edge, and decided to speed things up so that he could send Carrie off with Daisy. "Now, onto the rules. Horizon works because it is a safe place and the students feel safe here to open up and explore themselves. As a result, there is no sex, no drugs, no violence, and no inappropriate touching of any kind. Any of these things will be grounds for immediate punishment. Understood?"

"Yeah," she said while nodding her head that she understood.

"Any questions?"

This time, she didn't speak, or even look up at Peter, but shook her head that she indeed had no questions.

"OK, then, Daisy should be here any mom…" he started before being interrupted.

"You wanted to see me boss?" Daisy said while knocking on the doorjamb.

"You work here?" Carrie asked quizzically in Daisy's direction.

"No, she doesn't," He said towards Carrie, but at the same time waved his hand, telling Daisy to come in. Peter had now gotten up from behind his desk to meet Daisy, who stopped right next to Carrie. "Carrie, this is Daisy. Daisy, this is Carrie, the newest member of the Cliffhangers."

"Ah, fresh blood," Daisy said, rubbing her hands together and acting kind if sinister, but Peter knew from her tone that she was only joking.

"I expect you to behave yourself, Dais."

"I'll try my best, but I make no promises."

Ignoring Daisy's latest comment, Peter turned towards Carrie and said, "Daisy here will be your first week buddy. She will give you the grand tour, show you the ropes of Horizon, as well as filling you in in more detail about what is expected of you."

"Great," Carrie interrupted, "Sounds like so much fun." 

Peter decided to chalk Carrie's attitude up to readjustments and continued. "So, unless you have any more questions for me at this time, I will let the two of you head off on your way, and I'll catch up with you in a little while." With that, Peter sent Daisy and Carrie off. At first he had doubts about pairing Carrie and Daisy up together, but in the end he figured that they each had something special to offer to each other, and would get along well, in the end.

~*~

After giving Carrie the grand tour, Daisy led her from the cafeteria to the main lodge. "God, this place is so summer camp," Carrie exclaimed after seeing the dorms and the cafeteria and the grounds.

"It may appear that way on the outside, trust me, it is anything but summer camp. We have a curfew, school five days a week that we are expected to be at, chores that are expected to be done."

"Chores?" Carrie asked surprised. "Isn't there someone around here to do that?"

"Yeah, us, so I suggest that you get used to it." Daisy said while leading Carrie through the main lodge and into one of the rooms off to the side. "This is where we have group three days a week, which we are also expected to show up to. I say three days a week, but Sophie, our counselor, has been known to have group everyday in order to torture us."

"And just what kind of chores are we expected to do around here?"

"We aren't expected to do anything around here the rest of the staff wouldn't do, but the traditional group chores include kitchens, meal preparations, wood-chopping, which is a favorite form of punishment around here, bathrooms, cleaning the main lodge, I'm sure you get the idea. Anyway, the rest of the group should be here shortly."

"So, do we always do things together?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Daisy said as she heard a noise in the hallway. In fact, she heard a lot of noise in the hallway, which told here that the rest of the Cliffhangers were on their way, winding down from morning chores. "You guys managed to finish up without me, huh?" Daisy said with a tone of sarcastic sadness. "It just breaks my heart to know I wasn't missed."

"Who's she?" Scott asked, ignoring Daisy and nodding in the direction of Carrie, who was sitting with her back to the door.

"Carrie, come here." Daisy called, but Carrie just sat there for a few moments before turning around far enough to make eye contact with Daisy and see there was a group of other people in this room staring at her. Daisy then started to make the usual introductions until she noticed that David wasn't here. Once she finished, she turned towards Scott and asked, "Where's David?"

"He forgot something back at the cabin and had to run back and get it."

"Did I manage to beat Sophie?" David called as he fell into the doorway, out of breath.

The sound of a new voice caused Carrie to turn around and see who had arrived. When she made eye contact with David, she asked surprised, "David?" as if unsure that she was seeing whom she thought she was seeing.

He returned an equally shocking "Carrie? What are you doing here?"


	2. Painful Discoveries

Painful Discoveries

Painful Discoveries

The mood of the room changed drastically as the words echoed. 'Carrie, what are you doing here?' No one could believe that David and Carrie knew each other, that they shared a past. After letting the sight of her sink in, David walked over to her and embraced her in a big hug, a hug that she thought of fighting off until she realized just how good it felt. It had been far too long since she felt the security of being in his arms, the comfort that it was always able to provide. Feeling five sets of eyes digging into the back of his head, David pulled Carrie into the back corner. He desperately wanted to find out why she was here, but knew that this was neither the time nor the place. He also was curious to find out if she was glad to see him or if she still felt responsible for the events that transpired in each of their lives. While she had every reason to be angry with him, he hoped that deep down, she had resolved those feelings. Putting the urge to find out behind him for the moment, he simply whispered into her ear, "We have some free time after this, do you want to sneak away, and you know…talk?"

"You mean they don't schedule every minute of our time around here?"

"They try, and believe me, they are getting there, but they haven't succeeded yet. So, do you think you will be able to shake your first week baby-sitter?" David asked, motioning in Daisy's direction.

"Are you kidding? I've been giving people the shake all my life, and trust me, she won't be a problem." Carrie and David just sat there for a few moments, neither saying much of anything. They just sat there staring at each other; the shock of seeing each other was almost too much to bear. Carrie was the first to break the silence when she asked, "What's the deal with those people?" regarding the Cliffhangers, who were talking and starring at them from the other end of the room, obviously questioning how the two might possibly know each other.

"Oh, they have issues you can't even begin to imagine."

"Bigger then you and me?"

"Maybe," he said coyly.

"So share," Carrie begged her curiosity beginning to show. There was nothing like the security of knowing there were people around here more messed up the she was.

"Later."

"OK, then, where's the infamous Sophie person that everyone keeps talking about?" Carrie wanted to keep the conversation moving rather then allow David time to question her presence here and find out what she had been up to since they last saw each other. It would all come out, but she wanted it to happen far from these people she didn't know, and for the most part, didn't care to know.

"Your guess is as good as mine. She's never this late."

~*~

Peter was just leaving his office to find Kat and Hank when he realized that the Cliffhangers were waiting on Sophie, who wasn't going to show up. Knowing full well that he could not leave them waiting; he started to backtrack, mentally cursing himself for not asking someone else to cover Sophie's group today. The day was just beginning but he knew that by the end of it, he was going to feel the impact of doing both his and Sophie's job for the day. As he headed down the hallway to the classroom that the Cliffhangers were currently occupying, he was almost knocked over by the deafening silence. While under ordinary circumstances he would hang back and let them work things out, he didn't have the time today. Kat and Hank were still waiting for him. Walking in, he was surprised to find David and Carrie huddled closely together in the back of the room together and made a mental note to check both of their backgrounds to see if their were any potential red flags. Newbies hardly ever bond with the students on the first days. In fact, they hardly ever talked to anyone and the sight of David and Carrie huddled in the back set off a feeling in him that he just wasn't able to shake, no matter how hard he tried to convince himself that he was reading far too much into the situation. "Morning guys," Peter said, trying to break up whatever was going on in this room. 

"Hey Peter. What are you doing here? Where's Sophie?" Juliet asked.

"Sophie's at home. She wasn't feeling to good this morning, which means you guys are stuck with me for the day."

"Sophie had morning sickness, huh? Is there something that the two of you are hiding from us Peter?" Shelby prodded.

"I didn't say that Sophie had morning sickness, I said that she wasn't feeling well this morning. Besides, you know full well about her condition and how difficult it is for her to get pregnant, so you are not, and I repeat, not to bring this up to anyone else here and especially not to Sophie when she comes back, understood?" He said with a tone of anger in his voice. He felt bad about loosing it in front of the students, but he could not help but think about how bad hard this would be on Sophie if people around here thought that she was pregnant and she wasn't. 

"So, what do you have planned for us this morning?" Scott asked, seeing how much Peter was troubled by the previous conversation and wanted to lighten the mood and take his mind off things.

"Whatever it is, it's going to have to be quick. I'm pulling double duty today and Kat and Hank are waiting to talk to me."

"Kat and Hank are here," Juliet squealed, "why didn't you say something sooner. I've missed her so much and I am so glad that she's back."

"Me too Juliet, but you must remember that her role here is different now. She is no longer a peer."

"Does that mean we have to respect her and listen to her?" Ezra asked sarcastically.

"As much as you would respect me, or Sophie, or any other counselor here."

"Oh good, then nothing has to change," Shelby said with a crooked smile on her face.

"Shelby…" Peter said with a tone that implied that Peter wasn't up for these types of games right now.

"I'm sorry…. We'll show her more respect," she said trying to appease him.

Preoccupied with everything that has been going on, Peter came up with a solution that would free him of the Cliffhangers for awhile. "I'll make a deal with you guys," he started when he realized that David and Carrie were still in the back of the room. "Would the two of you care to join the rest of us?" he added.

With a quick look at each other, but not a word, they got up from the desks they were sitting on and joined the rest of the group up front.

"Now, as I was saying, if you guys can stay out of trouble, I'll let you off without group this morning, giving you some free time to catch up homework and studying. But please keep in mind that with the addition of Carrie we will be having group tonight and there will be no getting out of that one. Sound good to everyone?

A round of cheers was all Peter needed to hear and he left them to find Kat and Hank. He could not help but be curious as to why the two of them needed to talk to him. Kat wasn't even expected back until tomorrow.

~*~

"Do I look any different?" Kat asked once she and Hank had made their way into the woods.

"Why, do you feel any different?"

"I feel," Kat started as she spun in circles with her arms out," like I'm on top of the world.

"It's a great feeling, isn't it?" Hank asked before he ran up behind her, grabbed her around the waist, and swung her around three times before setting her down. "When are you going to tell Peter?"

"Do I really have to?"

"Yeah, but I don't get why you are so nervous. He is going to be happy for you, for us."

"Have I ever showed you my absolute favorite place here at Horizon?" Kat asked, trying to change the subject. She didn't want to talk about this right now. Grabbing his hand, and dragging him through the woods, she didn't give him an opportunity to respond.

~*~

It didn't take Peter long to track down Kat and Hank once he walked out of his office and discovered the waiting room was empty. She had been gone the whole summer, and while he wouldn't admit it out loud, he missed her and was glad that she was back. She was such a positive influence on the other Cliffhangers, and he knew she would do the same thing with her own group. Heading down to the lake, Peter was sure that he would find the two of them there, considering it had long been Kat's favorite place. Whenever she disappeared, that's where he went to look for her. It was the place she ran to when she ran on her first night here, and it was the place she ran to whenever she needed to be alone, to think. Rounding the lake, he saw the two of them, cuddling on a log. When he called out to them, both Kat and Hank stood up to greet him. After shaking Hank's hand, and giving Kat a big hug, Peter sat down on the log and asked, "What can I do for the two of you? How was your summer?"

Looking up at Hank, Kat got the reassuring look she was hoping for and said very quickly, "I have some bad news to tell you, Peter."

From the big smile that had crept across her face, Peter had no idea what type of bad news was about to be dropped on him. "Oh?" He asked quizzically.

"Yeah, you see, Hank…" she paused, "Hank's been transferred."

"That's great, I think," Peter said, even more confused then before.

"I'm going with him." She found herself blurting out.

This statement caught Peter more off guard then Kat had planned, but at the same time, she hadn't planned on just blurting it out like she did, but she couldn't help it, she finally had the courage to tell him. "I'm confused," he finally admitted. "I thought you were looking forward to working here, and now you are just going to through those plans away. Why Kat? I don't get it?"

It was after this statement that she realized it was time for her to be honest with Peter and tell him everything. While he might be disappointed with the fact that she was leaving, hopefully he would be happy under the circumstances. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a sheet of white paper that looked well worn. "This is why I am really leaving. Hank got transferred because of this, because of me," she said and handed him the piece of paper.

Unfolding it, he read what it said before looking up at her and asking, "is this for real?"

"Yeah," she said, nodding her head, but she could feel that her face was expressionless because she could not tell how Peter had taken the news that was contained on that piece of paper.

~*~

It took awhile, but Carrie was finally able to get away from Daisy and the others and met David outside the cafeteria, which was not too far from the girl's dorm, so she was able to avoid getting too lost. "What took you so long?" he asked once he spotted her and she was within earshot. He then got up and pulled her behind the building, out of sight before anyone could see them.

"That Dixie Chick…"

"You mean Daisy?" he questioned.

"Yeah, Daisy, whatever. Any time I got up, she got up and followed me. I finally told her that I was going to the bathroom, and when she decided against joining me in there, I snuck out the window. I was surprised that there weren't bars on the windows."

"Well, if you think about it, just how many places did you see within the last ten miles of this place? We are in the middle of nowhere, so I guess they don't see much reason for the bars." He said as he continued to lead Daisy through the woods.

She was tempted to tell him that she was so drugged up on the way here that she barely even knew what state she was in, let alone what city, but instead she questioned where he was dragging her. She was so lost right now that she had no idea which direction would lead them back.

"Would you trust me? We are almost there," he said as they arrived in a clearing just beyond all the trees. He then went over to a couple to tree stumps and sat down, encouraging her to do the same. They went through the usual good-to-see-you chitchat before David finally got the courage to ask Carrie what she was doing here, but he was in no way prepared for her answer.

"I'm here because of you." She said rather coldly.

"Me?" he responded, confused.

~*~

David just sat there, stunned. Did she really say that she was here because of him? She couldn't have. "How did you even know I was here?" he finally heard himself ask.

"I didn't," she said and let her voice trail off.

"Then how could you be here to see me?"

"I'm not," she said but she was starting to get irritated with him. "I'm not here to see you, I'm here as a result of you. If I had a choice of seeing you every day of my life or never seeing your face ever again, I would choose the later and never look back."

David could not help but be stunned by what he had just heard. He was sure by her returning his hug and meeting him out here now that she had forgiven him. "If you hate me so much, then why did you look so happy to see me?"

"I have news for you. That was shock, not happiness. I honestly thought you were dead. You were heading down that path, and then one day you just disappeared so I just assumed…"she said before letting her voice trail off again. They both knew where she was going.

"I had no idea the effect it had on you…," he said, sounding almost sincere. "My goal was never to cause you any amount of pain. Now, all things aside, including how much you hate me, how did you end up here?"

"After you left, I had no outlet for the pain I was feeling. I thought, and even still do to an extent that you did what you did because of me. I couldn't stand the loss of someone else in my life David, and I found some serious ways to dull the pain."

"And I take it that Jim and Catherine didn't take too kindly to that?"

"Not in the least. In fact they told me that my only choice was to come here and get help or they would turn me back over to the state. The last thing I wanted was to bounce between foster homes for the next two years until I became legal, so I gave in. At least I was away from them."

Just the thought of mentioning her foster parents brought back the memories of her real parents and the tragic death they suffered, and she broke down. The tears rolled down her face, one by one, and she didn't bother to wipe them away. The sight of her so fragile and vulnerable made David realize why he loved her so much and instead of continuing the conversation in its current direction, he let her cry and got down next to her on the ground and held her.


End file.
